Chevrolet won the Manufacturers’ World Touring Car Championship (WTCC) title in Macau on Sunday 21 November 2010, while Yvan Muller was officially declared Drivers’ WTCC Champion. This double success, the first of Chevrolet and GM in a FIA-sanctioned world championship, seals a perfect finale to the outstanding campaign of the Cruze throughout the season.
"It’s fantastic to conquer the title in my first year with Chevrolet. It’s never easy to be competitive straight away with a new car and a new team, but integration into this wonderful team has been easy, as I received a lot of support from every member of the team. I have no words to express my appreciation and my gratitude to them. It is my second WTCC title, I am really very happy, I want to enjoy every single second of this success and share it with all the people that made it possible. Moments like this are so rare in life that one has really to take the chance to savour and enjoy them fully!” said an elated Yvan Muller.
The championships were conquered with bravura, as Rob Huff and Yvan Muller took a double win in Race 1, after a faultless flag-to-flag performance. In Race 2, the Chevrolet duo had to fight hard to pass Farfus, finishing 3rd and 4th, which means that Chevrolet has been on the podium in 21 of the 22 races this year. Unfortunately, this was not enough for Huff to take the runner-up position in the championship, as he finished tied in points with Tarquini, declared vice-champion only on number of wins.
Alain Menu had a more difficult week-end but showed again his tremendous team spirit and personal bravery, having to cope with the sad news of his dad’s death. The Swiss finished Race 1 in 7th position, after a contact with the wall in lap 1, but could not take advantage from the first row position in Race 2, as a mechanical problem got him stuck on the grid.
“What a great car and what a great team we have. Congratulations to Yvan, he drove beautifully throughout the season and fully deserves the title. The team has done a terrific job in putting all the pieces of the puzzle together to achieve this great result. I am proud of being part of such a team and grateful of the trust that Chevrolet and RML put on me since day one. I had some cracking results throughout this season, although I couldn’t be in a position to fight for the title due to some race incidents out of my control, but I really look forward to next year,” said Rob Huff who finishes the 2010 WTCC in 3rd place behind Muller and Tarquini.
As “We are the Champions!” was being sung in the Chevrolet garage after the race, amid accolades, toasts and some tears, the RML team was preparing for a long night of well-deserved celebrations. Once back in Europe, work will resume, with a new challenge in sight: getting the new Cruze 1.6 turbo as competitive as the current race car in 2011.
STORY BY GENERAL MOTORS
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